Those who've posted here a while know that I have long had exclusive access to a sweet little property in Central Iowa. I've always been a little cagey about specifics because there are some powerful and wealthy hunters surrounding it and we all know what power and money can do. Well, exclusive access is gone and I feel free to talk about it, if for no other reason than to bemoan my situation among sympathetic friends.

I stumbled into the place almost on a lark back in the mid-90's. It is a little sliver of active crop and pasture land with a small timber on the back side. It is owned by a elderly widow who rents out the farming. What makes it special is that it is surrounded on three sides by a massive, professionally managed hunting preserve, owned by a prominent millionaire. He owns several thousand acres and this piece was the only thing standing in the way of total control. Rumor has it that she has turned down some very lucrative offers from her wealthy neighbor.

Anyway, I always worked very hard to be a good steward and considerate guest. I've tried to keep close contact with the landowner and bring a small gift at the close of every season. I've never left a gate open, damaged a fence, or driven over crops. I have also worked diligently to cooperate with the hunting perverse staff. I have often gone out of my way to harvest does to aid in conservation efforts and I have never crossed their fences to retrieve game without their express permission. While I have never met the millionaire in person, his staff has always been friendly and helpful to me. It has been the scene of some of my greatest hunting experiences. I've taken multiple mature bucks there including a pair of 160 classes and several that dressed in excess of 200 lbs. I've never failed to fill my freezer for the year with does and I've often filled the freezers of friends, family and the donation program. It has been a real blessing to hunt there. The rub has always been that the farmer who rents from her is a real ass. No two ways around it and I will gladly tell him to his face. Over the years I've had very few interactions with him, but they have always been unpleasant. Again, I have never given him cause for concern but he was always rude and dismissive. It never made sense, until this year.

I visited the property to hang a gun stand two weeks ago and was surprised to find a strange blind in the way. On inspection I found my 2D buck decoy, that I had left weighted down with a log the season before and thought I had lost!!! Obviously I did some checking with the landowner and was saddened to see that in the year since I had last seen her, her memory and faculties had deteriorated badly. Not only did she not know who's blind it was, she had trouble following the conversation. I had no choice but to contact the farmer. True to form, he was rude and quickly explained that he had taken over control of the hunting and given permission to someone else. He ordered me to remove my stands at once. The curious thing was understanding why he had taken this approach, so I did some asking around the community. As it turns out, the farmer is a lackey for the millionaire and has a reputation for bulling farmers and hunters to gain favor with the big preserve.

Iowa laws state that farming leases carry hunting rights unless otherwise stated. That statement should be put in writing but it can be verbal. The verbal permission from the landowner has always been enough but given her condition I know it will no longer hold water. I packed up my gear and walked away. I was blessed with permission to hunt somewhere for the gun season but I have to start over and find a new place next year. Obviously, the real tragedy is that the landowner is not well. She has been a good friend and is in my prayers. It's just a sad situation all around.

JPH I understand your pain. You are definately not alone in this boat. It really sucks when you loose a honey hole. Over the years I have lost some really great places to hunt for various reasons. None from my neglect of their property or disrespect. Just circumstances have changed. As for the farmer...every dog has his day. His is coming I'm sure. You can't go around bullying people without it coming back to bite you at some point.I sure hope you find another suitable area to hunt. I do beleive everything happens for a reason.

That is a very sad story JPH. It must be very hard for you emotionally to have to give up something that has been such a big and important part of your life. For me hunting is so much more than the killing of game, it is partly who I am. I suspect it is to you also. The family farm that I have hunted for the past 25 years is such a part of me that I could not put it into words. We almost lost it at one point and it was akin to a death in the family. It all worked out and my brother and I regained ownership. I hope you will find another place to chase your dreams.

I feel your loss too JPH. We did lose the family farm we hunt, but at the the eleventh hour another relative, stepped in and bought the property to keep it in the family. You will find another place. Good luck.

The only real difference between a good tracker and a bad tracker is observation. All the same data is present for both. The rest is understanding what you are seeing.

Thanks guys. It's good to know I'm not alone. It is also good to remember that I'm not the real sad story here. I'm not the one living alone, slowly losing my memories and the land that gave me my livelihood in my youth. I'm also not a small minded bully who's star is hitched to someone wealthier and more powerful. It's also important for me to be thankful that I do have other places to hunt. I own my own hunting ground in another state and I have permission to hunt some farms near my home. Nothing will replace Pat's farm but life does go on.